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Keen Blade

Keen Blade

Look Sharp !
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We've got some big lads in our squad like Souttar , Anel , Moore & Souza.
So why are our corners so ineffective ?
1. They don't vary enough - all the same looping delivery - why not have some hard-driven ones or even a short-corner routine ?
2. The way our attackers all group together around the penalty spot and then try to "starburst" whilst the ball is in flight which ends up with some of them backpedalling just to reach the ball (momentum in wrong direction for header).
Firstly , this means if the ball drops short or goes long , no one is in a good position to meet it.
Secondly , it causes congestion in a small area with lots of pulling & pushing which ends up producing no clear chances or a foul being given.
We should vary the setup , sometimes having two or three around the opposite corner of the box to where the corner is taken - these can then run in and meet the ball which gives them an advantage over defenders who are forced to run with them towards their own goal (something defenders hate).

This is such basic stuff I can't understand why we persist with poor corner delivery & setup.
At least try some variety !
 

Overall 2% of corners lead directly to goals, we’re not as bad as a lot of people think.

It’s not like every other team scores from corners for fun every week and we don’t. Our issue sometimes is our corners are bad enough that they lead to the opposition creating a chance down the other end.
 
Wow - only 2%. Surely we must be able to improve on that?

A very common routine does seem to be a very long ball for Soutar to head back across goal. I agree we need more variation on corners and free kicks generally.

What I want more than anything else is more shots on goal though. The Blades are seemingly often reluctant to pull the trigger.
 
Keen Blade said:
We've got some big lads in our squad like Souttar , Anel , Moore & Souza.
So why are our corners so ineffective ?
1. They don't vary enough - all the same looping delivery - why not have some hard-driven ones or even a short-corner routine ?
2. The way our attackers all group together around the penalty spot and then try to "starburst" whilst the ball is in flight which ends up with some of them backpedalling just to reach the ball (momentum in wrong direction for header).
Firstly , this means if the ball drops short or goes long , no one is in a good position to meet it.
Secondly , it causes congestion in a small area with lots of pulling & pushing which ends up producing no clear chances or a foul being given.
We should vary the setup , sometimes having two or three around the opposite corner of the box to where the corner is taken - these can then run in and meet the ball which gives them an advantage over defenders who are forced to run with them towards their own goal (something defenders hate).

This is such basic stuff I can't understand why we persist with poor corner delivery & setup.
At least try some variety !
Click to expand...

Our corners are designed for 2nd phase goals.

Meaning we aren't trying to score from the cross, instead hit the man at the back post (normally Souttar) to head it back across goal to then be scored.

I've no idea on the stats but I would imagine far fewer goals are scored from 2nd phase rather than directly from the corner

Yet for some reason we persist.. 🤷‍♂️
 
Sanguine said:
Wow - only 2%. Surely we must be able to improve on that?

A very common routine does seem to be a very long ball for Soutar to head back across goal. I agree we need more variation on corners and free kicks generally.

What I want more than anything else is more shots on goal though. The Blades are seemingly often reluctant to pull the trigger.
Click to expand...
It generally ends in the ref giving the home side a free kick
 
Sanguine said:
Wow - only 2%. Surely we must be able to improve on that?

A very common routine does seem to be a very long ball for Soutar to head back across goal. I agree we need more variation on corners and free kicks generally.

What I want more than anything else is more shots on goal though. The Blades are seemingly often reluctant to pull the trigger.
Click to expand...
Last time I heard this stat (a few seasons ago) it was 1%.
 
Stats state-

2% long corners lead to goals
3% short corners lead to goals

Only slightly better conversion rate- but you would think throwing in more short corners certainly worth trying.

Souttar running round to back post nodding back across is definitely a good set piece, because nobody can get near him. I can see more goals coming from that.
 
First time around CWAK developed some really good corners routines. Agree this time they do seem pedestrian. It seems routines go in and out of fashion, a few years back everyone had a front post flick on in the locker, you hardly see it these days.
 
Interestingly, 33% of the goals we have conceded this season have been direct from corners/first contact goals.
 
BalticBlade said:
Interestingly, 33% of the goals we have conceded this season have been direct from corners/first contact goals.
Click to expand...

I imagine that it was similar last season too - we seemed to be terrible at defending corners (one of the many baffling things about last season is why we didn't even seem to focus on getting the basics right to play to our strengths).

Interesting that we've scored at least two goals from the oppositions corners this season.
 
Geordie Blade said:
I imagine that it was similar last season too - we seemed to be terrible at defending corners (one of the many baffling things about last season is why we didn't even seem to focus on getting the basics right to play to our strengths).

Interesting that we've scored at least two goals from the oppositions corners this season.
Click to expand...
Were they both v kamikaze Hull?
 
Teams are just better at defending corners ,it's barely an opportunity to score especially as refs blow for the slightest touch .
Teams generally hoof it in there hoping something drops ,nothing wrong with that but like to see it mixed up a bit ,after all there's little to lose by trying something different.
 
coolasanidiot said:
Stats state-

2% long corners lead to goals
3% short corners lead to goals

Only slightly better conversion rate- but you would think throwing in more short corners certainly worth trying.

Souttar running round to back post nodding back across is definitely a good set piece, because nobody can get near him. I can see more goals coming from that.
Click to expand...
It's 33% more goals though!. Ah statistics, don't you love em???
 

Torrix1889 said:
Was only saying the same at Stoke. At the back Souttar hardly loses an aerial duel yet in the oppositions box he hardly wins one. Need to play to his strengths more IMO.
Click to expand...
If Souttar started on the opposite side to where the corner is being taken and then ran in to meet the ball , I don't see how they could defend against him.
 
Anyway , the consensus seems to be we should try different tactics with corners , so I hope the coaches are listening and I'll do a little "corner-watch" at Ewood.
 
Gil Reece was a terrific player. Fast, good two footed dribbler and hard as nails. Really good in the air too, especially for a relatively small guy. One of my all time favourite Blades. One of my earliest memories of the Lane is a superb headed goal from a Woodward cross against Everton in the cup. Addison scored another superb header from a Woodward cross. United were fantastic that day. 1970 I think it was. We were in the second dividion and I think Everton went on to be champions that year. They were a very good side but United more than matched them. It was one of those games from my childhood that started a lifelong love affair with the Blades.
 
It's a few years old now but tifo did a video on corners explaining why they aren't that effective in today's game



They also did a slightly more recent one explaining how they could be made better

 
For me it's not just corners but our crosses in general. The majority end up between the 6 yard line and the goal line in the centre, easy pickings for the keeper or defenders. Crosses in open play often come in from the goal line to the edge of the 6 yard box with the same effect. Our crosses and corners seem to be aimed at picking off the scraps and trying yo knock in rebounds.

Another reason our corners and crosses don't lead to goals is the players who take unnecessary extra touches instead of shooting, Brooks and Moore being the main culprits.

I do also sometimes have to question who takes them. For years Norwood took them and his corners were woeful. When we let Fleck take them instead they became better. So maybe bad decision making on who to cross to makes a difference too.

I never get excited when we win a corner and haven't done for the last ten years. About the only time we ever looked good at them was when David Cotterill, David Unsworth or Jon Harley took them.
 
Bradfordblade said:
Gil Reece was a terrific player. Fast, good two footed dribbler and hard as nails. Really good in the air too, especially for a relatively small guy. One of my all time favourite Blades. One of my earliest memories of the Lane is a superb headed goal from a Woodward cross against Everton in the cup. Addison scored another superb header from a Woodward cross. United were fantastic that day. 1970 I think it was. We were in the second dividion and I think Everton went on to be champions that year. They were a very good side but United more than matched them. It was one of those games from my childhood that started a lifelong love affair with the Blades.
Click to expand...
I wasn't at the Everton game but I became a Lane regular from the next home v Preston
 
Chief_Froley said:
It's a few years old now but tifo did a video on corners explaining why they aren't that effective in today's game



They also did a slightly more recent one explaining how they could be made better

Click to expand...

I'm sure the Arsenal set piece coach would like to have a word about corners being ineffective. They seem to be scoring from corners for fun this year.
 

I suppose it's quality of opposition, but we seem far better at defending corners this season. Last season McBurnie was our best defender from corners by far - now we have Moore in this role (who is nearly as good). And if it gets past Moore then we have Souttar as well.
Attacking-wise, Souttar doesn't seem to get as many headers at goal as Egan did, although most of Egan's were off target or straight at the keeper. Need fewer floaty ones to the back post and more whipped in with a bit of pace.
 
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